Taste of Eternity
by OseanSoldier
Summary: When a Night Fury takes it upon his own paws to see that I live, things can get a bit interesting. Now all I know is that my hand is lost and has been replaced by that of a Night Fury. For some reason, I think that is going to be the least of my worries.
1. The Night Fury

And now, for something completely different. For those that have read my main and other short lived secondary stories, this is a stark departure from my usual area. No tanks, jets, massive naval vessels, star ships, lasers, or such in this story. But I wanted to try something new. As to what brought this story on, I got hooked on a HTTYD story about a week and a half ago. So you could say this story was inspired by "I Hear Him Scream" by Rift-Raft. Truthfully… the name didn't make much sense to me, but I loved that story nonetheless. Finally, I will be trying first person writing for the first time and there will be multiple PoV. Time to bring this overly long author's note to and end and actually start this story. Enjoy!

EDIT (9-19-2017)

Okay, so I am going to be heavily rewriting parts of this story as I attempt to get back into writing it. Thankfully it is only three chapters long, so it will not take me too long, but expect some differences from when this was posted.

* * *

 **Taste of Eternity**

 _Toothless_

I hated my life… To put it bluntly, I was a slave. So were all the other dragons, but they didn't know it. I had the 'blessing' of retaining control over most of my actions and thoughts. The other dragons had fake ideas of happiness and service to the queen forced upon them without a difference in the world. Me on the other hand… I was stuck having most of my free will, but not enough to escape this hell hole I am forced to call a nest. I don't know the exact reason behind this, but I believe it is so I can be a better 'leader' and take better care of the fellow dragons during raids. As for what I am, I am a dragon if that wasn't obvious enough for you. What? I am allowed to try and make my miserable life enjoyable. Jokes aside, I am simply a species of dragon called Night Shadows. Yeah, I know it's simple but it comes from our uncanny ability to blend in and disappear into the night sky.

As for what I am doing right now, I have the 'honor' of leading a raid on a rather well defended Viking town. I hated this part of my life the most. Being forced to violate my beliefs so the queen could be fed for another week. What beliefs you ask? Contrary to popular belief, dragons don't like stealing food. It is dishonorable. I know right, dragons? With honor? Surely I'm joking. However, that honor has been buried beneath into the deep recesses of the other dragons' minds by the queen. Forced to forget who and what they are. We were once proud hunters, but now we have been lowered to simple thieves.

I wanted nothing more than to fly away right now and never come back. I would be abandoning the rest of the dragons, but this life was pure torture. I almost wished that one of those Vikings would actually end my suffering. But alas I could do neither. The queen kept me from being able to fly away and from doing the more dangerous jobs on the raids. I was stuck to knocking down their outer defenses in hit and run attacks. Truthfully I respected these Vikings in that manner. No matter how many times I was forced against my will to knock their towers down, they were always rebuilt by the next time we came back. That right there is determination. No wonder they managed to actually live in what to most would be an inhospitable collection of islands.

Anyways, back to the actual raid. The first wave of dragons had already descended onto the village. Several buildings were alight with fire. I could hear the bleating of sheep as they were scooped up off the ground. The Vikings were scrambling to man their defenses, which meant it was my turn. My first target was a tower with one of those deadly rock flinging devices on top. I tucked in my wings as I started my dive. There was a high pitched whine as I lost altitude and prepared a bolt of plasma.

"Night Fury!"

"Get down!"

Ah, yes. The traditional call of the Viking. They shout out those words every time I attack. Truthfully, I do actually kind of find it somewhat amusing. I have to get my joy from the little things in life… Viking calls aside, I shot out my attack. The heavy mechanism the humans used for throwing stones into the air burst into hundreds of smaller pieces and ignited the top of the tower. However, the tower itself was still standing. So I looped around and dove in for a second pass. This time the tower itself collapsed. The humans on it jumped off trying to escape the fire and crumbling timber.

I gained some more altitude and began circling above the village. I had a great view of the chaos below. A good chunk of the town was burning. The Vikings were split between fighting us and putting out the fires. I guess that was a good thing. The fewer of them trying to kill us the better. Someday I hoped to find a way to free all of them, along with myself of course.

Spotting my next target, I dove in. It was another tower with a rock flinger. This one didn't have anyone on it at the moment, but I figured that was about to change. I could already see some Vikings heading towards it. I am sure they will have a good time rebuilding this one as well. The high pitched whine of my immediate attack started as I dove in. This time the entire tower burst into flames as my attack hit. I pulled up out of my dive, exchanging my speed for altitude.

 _Fwap_

Then I couldn't move. I could move somewhat, but the important things like… you know, my wings? Nope. There was something constrained around me. I knew that the Vikings had some sort of weapon that they threw that wrapped around a dragon, but there was no way a human could have hit me given how fast I was going when pulling out of that dive. Now I was hurtling towards the ground… I haven't crash landed since I was a mere pup. And I had never been going this fast before.

….

This is going to hurt… Well on the bright side, it seems I might be getting my wish after all…

* * *

 _Hiccup_

"Oh my gods… Yes!" I shouted, throwing both my hands into the air. I couldn't believe my luck. I had actually hit it! The dreaded Night Fury, taken down by me, the village screw up. I could not wait to tell someone about this. However, the reality of the situation quickly caught up with me. I am the village screw up… No one is going to believe me anyways… I would probably just get laughed at. Well, more than usual. The other teenagers would probably bully me. Again, more than usual. I think I will keep this to myself for now actually. Once I go find that Night Fury and can prove that I actually brought that demon down out of the sky, I will show my dad. Maybe then he will finally accept me…

I was debating whether I should try and find the downed Night Furry now or wait till later. Turns out nature decided for me. And by nature I mean another less than pleased dragon. Well… back to being the village screw up and running for my life.

* * *

"Hiccup… How many times do I have to tell you not to go outside during the raids?" Stoic, the village chief and my dad, asked in his usual disappointed tone. He slammed the door to our house behind him.

"Usually once or twice a raid," I answered. Hey, at least I was honest.

"That wasn't a literal question…" Stoic said in a surprisingly even more disappointed tone. I didn't know that was possible. "What were you doing anyways?"

Be honest and have my dad think I am lying to him, or lie and have him think I am telling the truth. Middle ground it is.

"I was just trying to help," I pleaded. Hey, that technically wasn't a lie, honesty intact.

"Hiccup, every time you try and help, disaster strikes! I have enough to worry about right now. Winter is coming and dragons are stealing more food than we can afford to lose," Stoic started. "I don't have time to deal with…. This"

"You just gestured to all of me," I said. This was a typical argument between us if you will.

My dad just shook his head before making his way back outside. Probably to take care of the mess I had made. The morning sun made its way through our front door before my dad pulled it shut. Well, time to go find the dragon I had shot out of the sky. And not just any dragon, a Night Fury! When I get back, I will go from village screw up to village hero. Then finally, just maybe, my dad will accept me.

* * *

 _Toothless_

Okay… I have had worse waking up calls. Actually, scratch that, this is the worst. This brought a whole new meaning to the term helpless. My body was wrapped up in a rather large set of… I don't know what the humans call it. It's kind of like vines with heavy stones on the end. Just as I had suspected when I first lost control when flying. All I knew is that it must have taken a massive and strong human to throw them and hit me given how far away I was and how fast I was going. That was when I became aware of someone moving around me. Perhaps the Viking who had brought me down was here to finish me off. At least I would die knowing I was taken down by a mighty warri-

Oh Dragoness of the Ocean you have got to be kidding me! This Viking was the one that took me down! He was… I don't even know how to start. I guess puny would begin to describe him. His arms and legs were like sticks! He didn't even have horns yet! That or maybe he just stumbled upon me. Yeah, that's it! He was just part of the gro-

"I don't believe it… I did it!" the Viking yelled.

Well so much for that theory. I let out a low growl to let the human know that I was actually awake. I had only barely been able to see him out of the corner of my eye that was not facing the ground. He stumbled backwards holding… really? That is his weapon? I could use that as a way to get food from my teeth… wait, I don't have that problem. Retractable teeth for the win! Well I am sure some other dragon could use it.

By know the Viking was mumbling about how he was going to kill me, blah, blah, blah, and make his father proud. Huh, was this human some sort of reject? Well, desperation is a wonderful motivator. I guess my death will at least benefit this young Viking. I glanced up at him as he raised the knife up above his head, sharp end pointing down at me. He seemed nervous. Probably his first time killing something. I let out a low groan before flopping my head on the grassy floor. Looks like I am about to be free of my slavery. Yep, any second now. Any moment… And now!

….

Okay what is this human doing? What is he waiting for?

"I did this…" I heard him mumble.

Of course he would be having second thoughts… back to a life… of. Wait a second. The queen's influence… it was gone. Okay human! Doubt! Lots of it! Second chance at life here I come! Assuming he doesn't leave me here to die… or find someone else to kill me… Okay, that is enough emotions for today. And tomorrow. Heck probably the next cycle of the moon.

My eyes snapped open upon hearing the noise of the human's tiny weapon cutting through my constraints. Once I felt the last one fall off my hind legs…. Let's just say instincts kicked in. In the blink of an eye, I had the little Viking pinned against a moss covered boulder with my forepaw. It was then that is frail size was easily apparent as my claws easily fitting around his neck. Honestly I was surprised a Viking this small was capable of existing. He looked scared out of his mind. I wasn't going to kill him. Killing an unarmed, since he has dropped his weapon, opponent was against the Code of the Night Shadows. That didn't mean I was letting him off without instilling the fear of the Dragon of the Sky into him. I let out one of the most powerful roars I had ever let out right into his face.

I turned and took a few quick steps before launching myself into the air. Freedom at last! I quickly used some of the magika in my body to form a barrier around my mind. I was not going back to a life of slavery. She only snapped me the first time because she surprised me. Now I get to… fall… Yep, definitely falling. Hello cliff face!

I heard the Viking collapse to the ground. Good, he could probably use the rest. That and I won't be the only one face planting into rock. I made a mental note that he hit first before my own muzzle impacted the wall. I tried to readjust my flight, but something was missing… I felt off balance. Yep, something was wrong. Oh joy… another wall of rocks. I wasn't sure if today was the best day of my life or the worst… Eh, I'm just going to go with both.

* * *

 _Hiccup_

When I came to, the sun was low in the sky. Had I really been out all afternoon? The last thing I remember was the Night Fury roaring in my face. That… was definitely the most terrifying experience of my life. I mean, when dad gets angry it isn't that bad, he isn't scary. As much as I disappoint him, I am still his son. Still, I was likely to get another stern talking to when I got back home after this little expedition.

On the bright side, I now had done something no other Viking had done. Hiccup the Useless had seen a Night Fury and lived. Now if only someone would believe me if I told them that. I think I would rather face the Night Fury again than the ridicule that would follow that story. I pushed myself off the ground and looked around for my dagger. It had slipped out of my hands when I fainted. Thankfully it was lying in the grass a few feet behind me. Bending down, I picked back up and put it back on my belt.

Considering all things, today was probably one of the better days of my life. The only problem was that it didn't make a difference to anyone other than myself. Well… I am used to that by now. I started back for the village and it was dark outside by the time I entered my house. My dad was asleep on his chair. I didn't mind as that would allow me to sneak upstairs without getting an earful about how I am the worst Viking Berk as ever seen and a disgrace to Norse culture.

If there was one thing I learned today it was that I wanted absolutely nothing to do with killing dragons. Ironic right? I spend my entire life trying to kill a dragon, to get noticed, and to please my father. To be a Viking! I finally get the chance to kill a dragon. To kill the demon that was plagued our village for years… and I bug out. It was just that dragon looked so human when I was about to kill it. The expression in its eyes was not that of a mindless beast. There was fear, recognition, acceptance…

And speaking about killing… why didn't it kill me? One does not grow up in Berk without the constant lessons about surviving against dragons. Most of it had to do with extremely dangerous, kill on sight, and how dragons always… always, go for the kill. And yet the Night Fury didn't. I don't know if it was because I had spared its life. If that were the case, that raised many more questions that it answered. Maybe answers would come tomorrow. For now, sleep.

* * *

 _Toothless_

Okay, I changed my mind. Definitely the worst day of my life…. Why this sudden change of heart you ask? Small detail about my tail. I was missing one of my tail fins! No tail fin, no flying. No flying, no escape from this stupid cove I managed to crash land in. It didn't matter how much magika I had stored up over the years. Bringing back a completely missing tail fin was not possible for one dragon to do. It would take a good group of dragons to accomplish such a task. And the only group of dragons around was controlled by power hungry queen. I wouldn't get help from them unless I submitted to the queen again, and there was no way that was ever going to happen.

So I was stuck here… on the ground. That part was what hit me the hardest. That I would never again soar through the sky. Never again feel the wind against my face. As I said, worst day of my life.

Now I was trying to sleep under the open sky. That part I didn't mind. It was nice to be away from that devil of a queen and the nest she calls home. I honestly cannot stress enough how good it feels to be free. And wet… okay open sky isn't so nice when the Dragon of the Sky decides it is time for a downpour. I scrambled to my feet and searched for some cover. Of course luck would have it, there was no obvious place to take shelter. So I went with the less obvious. I prepared a rather nice plasma blast, threw in a little bit of magika, and let it out. The explosion was quite nice. Pieces of rock now mixed in with the rain. Thankfully my tough scales protected me as they flew out from the center of the blast. When the dust cleared, there was now there was a nice little cave for me to hide in. I ran forward to get out of the rain and into shelter.

Walking in a few tight circles, I breathed out some low intensity plasma to create a bed of hot coals for me to sleep on. Sleep came quickly to me that night as I unceremoniously plopped down onto the coals.

Fish.

I smell fish. And a human, maybe the human from yesterday. But who cares, I want the fish. I slowly exited my humble hole in the wall to a new day and looked around for where the scent was coming from. The human was walking around the rim of the canyon walls above me. I don't know why he had the fish but I did not care. It was probably food for him to snack on. Maybe he will share. What? I can be hopeful. Besides, he didn't kill me. That and I am stuck in here. And for some reason I had a feeling that boy was my only hope of escape. Though I didn't know how he could get me out of here. If there was one thing that humans were other than determined, it was inventive.

I heard him give a short gasp when he saw me. I let out a low growl. I also could smell iron. He was armed. Maybe he had regrets about not killing me and was here to finish the job. The fish was a mere lure to get me close to him.

That was when I noticed something wrong. The heavy rainstorm from the previous night had softened the dirt wall above where the Viking stood. I could see if giving way underneath him as he stood there looking down at me. It didn't help that there were some pretty big boulders mixed into the dirt there. I gave a sort of warning bark, hoping to get the boy to realize the danger he was in. Trying to kill me or not, I am not letting him die before I find out. I believe the human saying is giving them the benefit of the doubt.

However, my warning bark had the opposite effect of what I had hoped. Apparently this boy is startled rather easily. While he did try and back up, he tripped and landed on the ground. The cliff gave way under the impact of his fall. Even with his frail form, the ground was too soft from the downpour of the previous night. I watched in horror as the boy plummeted down among some good sized rocks. I could hear him screaming as he fell, both in terror and in pain. The wall to this canyon were not small. I cringed when he hit the ground, rocks landing all around him.

I let out a startled yelp before rushing forward. I used my strong forepaws to push a boulder off of the injured Viking. He was badly bruised and… I am pretty sure human arms don't bend that way. But I could still hear him breathing. It was very faint and I could tell it was getting weaker. This boy was going to die… unless I did something. Chances are that something would be dangerous and reckless. Still, the Viking boy was still intact, well minus his left wrist was bent at quite a weird angle.

"I cannot believe I am doing this," I said to myself. This was beyond risky. The type of magika I was about to use had not been used in centuries to my knowledge. I knew I could heal the boy, but it would come at a cost. No he wasn't going to outright turn into a dragon or something like-

Okay maybe it was something like that, but no immediate dragon transformation. I could force my magika into his broken wrist. Use that point of his body as an access port. There would be a side effect to having that much magika in one spot though. The boy's hand would become that of the Night Shadow. The other side effect would be all the magika would remain in his body. Once it was done healing the boy, it wouldn't have an easy way out.

I didn't know exactly what to expect from having that much magika in a human. Magika was inherently dragon in nature. Forcing it into a human had never been done before, again, to my knowledge. Hopefully it wouldn't cause too many unforeseen problems. For all I know I could accidently turn the poor Viking completely into a Night Shadow. Eh, not that would be the worst thing that could happen. But I am running out of time, the boy is dying. Back to business. I can work out the details later.

I gently pulled the boy out of the rocks, dragging him in the dirt to give myself some room. I carefully put my right forepaw on the Viking's damaged wrist before putting my left paw over my right.

"Here goes nothing…" I mumbled to myself quietly. I forced as much magika in the boy as I could, commanding it to heal his broken body. I kept this up for nearly ten minutes before collapsing to the ground. The sudden drain of energy from my body left me all but exhausted. And the worst part was the human would probably wake up before me. The last thing I did before passing out was to make sure that it had worked. I could barely connect with my magika inside him as it was quickly assimilated to become his own. A small smile made its way onto my muzzle as I fainted.

It had worked.

* * *

Alright, remaster chapter one is finished. Not all that much is different, but I did make a few changes here and there. Made certain things flow better and all that. I will finish up the rest of the chapters here as soon as I can. I hope that you enjoyed it. It certainly has been too long since I paid any attention to this story. I will try to focus on it more here in the future.

Thanks again for reading and have a great day!


	2. Forbidden Friendship

Wow… Had this story up for less than forty eight hours and it already has seven follows, two favorites, and one review. And that was with FF acting all wonky. So thank you to all those who supported this little side project of mine! Honestly wasn't expecting this big of a response. Well… big being relative. Not bad for a story that was just posted (in my opinion). Anyways, enough rambling! Story time!

EDIT (9-19-17)

Updated with more details and smoother transitions

* * *

 _Hiccup_

I groaned was I started to come to my senses. The day so far was a blur… I had woken up at my house, ate breakfast, grabbed a spare fish, and started out looking for the Night Fury. A dumb idea by most standards, but my curiosity had gotten the better of me. The rain from the previous night had made much of the island muddy, but I wasn't going to let that stop me. I remembered finding this interesting cove. There was a lake at one end and the rest was a mixture of trees and grass. That was when I saw it; the Night Fury. It gave some sort of growl or bark. I tripped on something as I tried to back up. After that… I don't remember much. There was screaming… that much I do remember.

That and my entire body aches… I opened my eyes and looked around. It took me a moment to get my bearings straight. I did not like what I saw. I was at the bottom of the cove. The last time I checked, I was at the top. That would explain why I ache so much, and why I am having trouble remembering what happened. My head still hurt a lot though and I moved my left hand to rub it some. Something felt different… Very different. Even though I was sore, I felt stronger. Almost as if some powerful force was flowing through me. Even then, sitting up proved to be a difficult challenge. My left hand felt different from my right as pushed myself into a sitting position. Two things happened next.

One, I saw the Night Fury asleep a few feet away from me. Two, I caught a glimpse of… well, what used to be my hand. It took every fiber in my body not to scream at the top of my lungs. Instead I did all the freaking out in my mind. Something tells me that waking up a Night Fury by screaming my lungs out was a good way to get maimed by an angry dragon. What was I freaking out about? My hand was a dragon claw! It was complete with mostly black scales with a few brown scales scattered throughout, sharp claws, and everything else.

What happened next scared me even more. The scales started advancing up my arm. Strangely, they started turning a more brown in color the further they went up my arm. The transformation was incredibly painful as well. Having your skin cells rearrange themselves into something completely foreign is not something I would recommend. I finally reached my pain tolerance however and let out a loud scream. Doubling over, I used my still good right hand to grasp my left wrist. The scales felt strangely smooth, the only roughness coming from the slight changes in height between each scale. They had a cooler temperature to them as well. It was quite the contrast from the burning feeling that was now well past my elbow and making its way to my shoulder.

I glanced up and saw the freshly awakened Night Fury. It was in a low, crouched position staring at me with narrow eyes. I half expected it to attack me, but it never did. Instead I saw its eyes widen some, almost as if it was curious or worried, before it slow made its way over to me.

* * *

 _Toothless_

I was woken by the sound of a scream. Not one of fear, but one of pain. My eyes shot open as I unsheathed my teeth some and got into a defensive position. I quickly identified the source of the disturbance. It was the Viking kid. He was rolling on the ground. I could sense magika surging through him. I loosened my stance some and stood up to my full height, even if it wasn't that much taller. I slowly approached the clearly agonized Viking. He was looking at me. His eyes were full of fear. I don't know if it was because of what was happening to him or because he was scared of me. Truthfully it was probably a combination of both. All I knew is that I needed this kid to calm down. His screaming was starting to give me a headache.

As I got closer, my eyes widened in shock. The Viking's shirt around his left arm was torn to shreds. I could see the unmistakable signs that my magika had some unintended consequences with the Viking child. His entire left arm was covered in… brown scales? His wrist and lower were still mostly black, but the rest was a dark brown. All I knew was that I needed this kid's attention on me. So I did the most logical thing a dragon could do. I placed one of my heavy paws on the kid's chest and let out an ear shatter roar right in his face.

Humans might think that was overkill, but for dragons it was a good way of getting attention. Besides, it worked. The kid was no longer screaming his lungs out and he was staring straight at me. His eyes were as large as the moon. Kind of brought back the memory of when I did the same thing after he freed me. Though this time my intentions were much better.

"Finally…" I muttered, stepping off of the kid before getting a better look at his arm. The rate at which the scales were advancing up his arm and onto his shoulder had slowed tremendously.

"Y-you can talk?" The Viking said. My ears perked up at this. I glanced back at his shocked face.

"You can understand what I am saying?" I asked doubtfully. No human has ever been able to decipher the tongue of the dragons. The kid slowly nodded his head in response. Unintended consequence number two discovered. There was a moment of silence as I inspected the kid's arm further.

"This can't be happening… I am clearly dead… This is some trick by Loki," the human rambled, standing up before pacing some.

I scowled at the human. I thought that maybe my roar had gotten his attention, but it would appear that I was wrong. Maybe if I let him work this out of his system he would be more accepting. As it stands right now, I think he might believe that he is dead or crazy. Possibly a combination of both. I eventually grew tired of it when it became clear this kid was not going to stop anytime soon.

"Will you cut that out!?" I snapped loudly. "You're not dead and no one is playing any tricks on you."

"I'm talking to a dragon, that's not possible. So clearly, I am dead or this is some trick," the Viking responded. I wasn't getting anywhere with this kid…

"That or I did something to you and that caused an unintended side effect where you can understand me," I said, rolling my eyes.

"What… What did you do to me?" The Viking questioned as he stared down at me. His voice was shaking some, but that was understandable given the situation.

"I saved your life," I responded, poking his arm with one of my claws. By now the brown scales had ceased advancing up his arm entirely. "You fell off the cliff when the rocks underneath you gave way. I used most of my magika to heal you."

"Great… you saved my life now just so I could get killed by my own village later…" The kid said. He didn't sound very grateful… "If they see… this," he gestured to his arm, "I am as good as dead anyways."

"I don't know about humans, but when a dragon helps a fellow dragon they usually express some form of gratitude," I said in a rather cross voice. I know I shouldn't be mad at the human. What he said was probably true; should someone see him like that, he would at the very least be run out of his village if I had to take a guess.

"Sorry… I am just a bit worked up right now… I'm usually not like this…" The human started before giving a short laugh. "I mean personality wise of course, because I sure as Hel usually don't look like this."

"At least your sense of humor is intact kid," I said, mildly amused by the Viking's turnaround.

"My name's not kid," The Viking said, a hint of annoyance in his voice. "I'm Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third." Hiccup started before saddening some. "More commonly called Hiccup the Useless though…"

I looked down at the kid. I knew the tone of his voice, loneliness. Something I could greatly empathize with. I don't know why, but I suddenly wanted to hear this kid's, I mean Hiccup's, story. It might have had something to do with the fact that I haven't had a real conversation with another dragon in years where I could actually speak my mind. Sure he was no dragon, but he would have to do for now.

"That… doesn't sound too flattering…" I started, my ears drooping some.

"That's just the name calling part of it," Hiccup elaborated. "Don't even get me started on the bullying, being forced to be alone, constantly being reminded that I am a terrible Viking… even by my own father…"

I honestly felt bad for this Viking. We dragons cared for our weak. The consequences of being unworthy in the eyes of the queen…. Even her control over us couldn't stop us from protecting our own kin. I guess for him, killing a dragon was the only way he could be accepted among his kin. I just happened to be that very unlucky dragon.

"I don't know how much this will mean to you coming from a Night Shadow, but I can relate to that more than you realize…" I said, lying down and resting my head on the grass.

"What do you mean?" Hiccup asked me, tilting his head to the side some.

"The dragons, all of us, are slaves," I answered. "Forced against our will to feed our 'queen' or else she feeds on us."

"That's terrible!" Hiccup exclaimed, looking down at me in shock. "Why don't you all do anything about it?"

"Because we literally can't," I snapped back angrily before taking a deep breath and calming down. "Tell me, how much do you humans know about dragons' abilities?"

"You fly, you breathe fire, you have long stamina, very tough scales," Hiccup listed. He hadn't noticed but the brown scales on his arm had almost completely reverted back to normal. Just his wrist and hand stayed looking like my own. "And I just learned you have the ability to turn humans into dragons."

"Well, if you would actually look at yourself, you're mostly back to normal," I retorted. "And I can honestly say that was never my intention. An… unintended side effect if you will."

"How many 'unintended' side effects have there been so far?" Hiccup asked as he looked over his arm and let out a sigh of relief.

"Just two, that and the fact that you can understand me," I answered.

"Speaking about understanding… how is it that you can understand me?" The Viking asked further.

"Dragons deciphered your language ages ago," I rolled my eyes as I answered. "Makes it a lot easier to fight you if we know what you are doing."

"You know…. That actually explains a lot…" Hiccup said. "Last question I promise."

I nodded my head.

"Is… is this permanent?" He asked, pointing at his now draconic hand.

"Yes…" I sighed, "It was the only way I could get enough magika into you to heal you. That fall put you on the very brink of death."

"I know I said that was my last question but-" Hiccup started before I cut him off.

"What is magika?" I finished for him. Hiccup nodded in response. "It is a force that dwells inside all dragons. While its uses are limited, it makes a dragon much more powerful. It lets us make our attacks stronger, heal our wounds faster, and to move faster. In some unfortunate cases if the wielder is strong enough, enslave an entire dragon nest…."

* * *

 _Hiccup_

I never, not in a million years, thought I would ever feel sorry for a dragon. It was unheard of for a Viking to feel anything but hatred for a dragon. And yet after learning about their enslavement, I couldn't help but feel sorry for them. I honestly didn't know what to say at this point. While I considered my life to be bad, I wasn't a slave as the dragons supposedly were. Then again, I didn't have any reason to think that this Night Fury was lying.

"How did you manage to break free?" I asked.

"She actually released her grip on me…" The Night Fury answered, frowning as he did so. "She saw me as no longer useful to the nest and not worth the large amount of magika she used to maintain a hold on me."

"Why did she do that?" I questioned further. So much for the whole 'last question' thing.

The Night Fury let out a low sigh before swinging his tail around in front of me so I could get a better view of it. At first nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but then I noticed something was wrong. His left tail fin was missing. A dragon without a tail fin couldn't fly. And a dragon that couldn't fly was as good as dead.

"I did that, didn't I," I muttered. Before today, grounding a dragon would have been a great accomplishment for me. Yet now… I regretted it. This entire conversation had gone by so fast with so much emotions. I guess I forgot I was talking with a dragon as it had been so long since I had a conversation at this level.

"Yeah… you did," The Night Fury started as he moved his tail back behind him. He didn't sound angry or upset, just sad. "I don't hold it against you, nor am I mad at you in case you were wondering. I almost guess I should thank you. I'm free from the queen's control now because of what you did."

"It seems ironic though," I said. "I took your left tail fin, you took my left hand."

"Ha, well I did that out of an act of mercy while I do believe you were trying to kill me," The Night Fury countered.

"Right…" I sighed before looking down at the ground. "Thank you for that. I know I was upset about it earlier, but I would rather live looking like…this," I looked down at my hand, "than be dead."

"Don't mention kid," The Night Fury said before standing up and stretching out some. Realizing I had been sitting for a while, I did the same. It felt good to stand up. I opened and closed my new claw like hand several times. It felt much as my old hand had. Thinking ahead, if I only had to hide my hand and wrist, I could probably just wear a black glove over it and no one would be the wiser. Since I spent most of my time in the forge with Gobber, that wouldn't be too hard to pull off. That coupled with my long sleeve shirts should conceal it almost completely. Well, not this shirt anymore. Its sleeves was torn to bits.

"So do you know why those brown scales started working their way up my arm when I first woke up?" I questioned. The last thing I needed was to be in the middle of a village full of dragon-killing Vikings then… Well, you get the idea.

"If I had to take a guess, and this really is a completely wild guess, it was because you were so worked up and upset. Probably tied to your emotions somehow. Magika itself is tied to a dragon's emotions. So when your emotions get out of your control, so does the magika. Would also take a crack that you could just change if you wanted to," The dragon answered.

At least he was honest.

I looked up and saw that the sun was setting lower in the sky. How long had I been out? I should probably try and get back to the village soon. As impossible as it seemed, someone might notice Hiccup the Useless isn't to be found. I know, what are the chances of that actually happening? Well, Gobber might notice, but he would likely be the only one.

"I should get back to Berk…" I said as I looked around for a way out of this cove. I spotted a small crack in the canyon walls that had some rocks leading up to it. Hopefully that would prove to be an exit.

"Before you go… can I ask you two questions?" The Night Fury asked.

"Given how many I asked you, I think that it would only be fair," I replied.

"Why did you come back?" He asked with a good amount of curiosity in his voice.

"I guess I wanted to learn…" I started. "We are taught that dragons will always go for the kill. So when you didn't kill me yesterday, it sparked my interest."

"I could smell iron and fish on you when you first approached his morning. I thought that you were going to try and kill me again," The Night Fury said. He almost sounded… ashamed. "As for my second question… Will you come back again?"

"Pardon?" I reeled back from the sudden request.

"I mean… I'm trapped in this cove. Without the ability to fly, I cannot leave. Getting food would be nearly impossible. That… and I actually enjoyed your company. It has been far too long since I had an actual conversation with someone."

"I guess I could… I mean, as of now you are the closest thing to a friend that I have," I smiled some back at the dragon. "I'll come back. Will bring some food for you as well. And I have to agree, it was nice to have a real conversation with someone again. But before I go, what's your name?"

"Night Shadows don't have names," the dragon replied in an uninterested voice.

"Why not?" I inquired, my curiosity once again spiked.

"Tell me, how many others of my kind have you seen?" He asked as he glanced up at me.

"Well… no one has really ever seen a Night Fury before…" I trailed off.

"In that case, I will tell you that I am the only one around. Night Shadows tend to not stay together. Even then, most dragons don't have names. Dragons don't see a need for them unless it is to immortalize an important dragon," the Night Fury explained.

"Well… you stopped me from dying; I would say that important," I started. "How about I give you a name?"

The Night Fury looked at me in shock. At first I thought I had offended it somehow. For all I know I very easily could have just insulted some ancient tradition or dragon god.

"I… I would like that," The Night Fury answered, nodding his head slightly.

"Alright then… from now on, you shall be known as Toothless," I said.

"What? I have teeth though!" Toothless protested, unsheathing his teeth in the process.

"Yeah, but I have hardly seen them at all today," I countered before heading off toward the hole in the cliff walls. "See you tomorrow, Toothless!"

I half expected Toothless to chase me down and force me to name him something else, but he never did. Climbing up the large rocks to where the split in the walls were, I let out a low sigh of relief. There was indeed a way out for me here. At first I pondered telling Toothless about it, but after entering the narrow gap I realized that I barely fit through it. Once I was back at the normal level of the forest, I got my bearings straight based off of the location of the sun and headed back to Berk.

* * *

 _Toothless_

A name… while it was silly, it was better than Hiccup. When the Viking first asked me that, I was in a state of disbelief. What I had done was something any dragon with an advanced understanding of magika could have accomplished. I didn't accept his offer because of the pride of having a name or because I didn't want to hurt Hiccup's feelings, but rather because I felt honored by it. He saw me was someone important in his life even if we had just met. To refuse would have been to reject the notion that I was important to him.

Granted, our interaction so far consisted of him shooting me down, making me a cripple, him trying to kill me, then me instilling the fear of the Dragon of the Sky into the boy, him falling off a cliff, me saving his life, then us talking and asking questions for a long… long while. Eh… I have had worse starts to friendships. Just to be clear, those friendships tended to be the ones where I don't need enemies with friends like them.

All that aside, I truly felt I had connected with Hiccup. And I don't mean the literal connection I forced between the two of us when I pumped him full of my magika to prevent him from dying. I looked forward to him visiting tomorrow. Hopefully he would bring food. Like fish! Grand and glorious fish! Oh how I loved fish.

…

Great… now I am hungry again… Where is that fish Hiccup was carrying?

* * *

 _Hiccup_

I waited for darkness to descend on the village before I started making my way towards the forge. I knew there were some black leather gloves I could use there to conceal my hand. Thankfully Gobber had quit for the night and getting in undetected was a rather simple task. However, finding the black gloves in the dead of night was going to be rather hard… Or it should have been, but for some reason I could see just fine. They weren't hanging in their usual spot. I looked next to the grinding wheel next but had no luck there either. Maybe by the anvil? Nope, no luck there either. I let out a low sigh before heading towards the room I had in the back. It was where I drew up all my crazy inventions. The ones that tended to get me in trouble and mocked for the next week.

I let out a sigh of relief as I could make out the gloves sitting on my table. I quickly grabbed the left one and slipped it over my draconic hand. It fit nicely and covered up the black scales perfectly. If by chance the glove slipped off a bit and some of them did show, hopefully the scales would just appear as if they were the glove. I snuck back out of the forge and started for my house. Thankfully not many people were out this late and I managed to get home without incident. Upon opening the door however…

"Where have you been?" My dad asked as I closed the door behind me and turned a bit to the side to hide my torn up shirt and gloved hand. "Gobber said you weren't at the forge today."

"I was out in the forest," I answered. "Just exploring and such."

"Why didn't you tell anyone? Gobber spent a good chunk of time trying to find you. And given the recent raid, he was needed working, not wasting time trying to find you," Stoic scolded.

"Well, usually no one cares where I am or what I am doing as long as I am not in their way," I countered, my voice dropping a bit as I did.

My dad went to say something, but I think he knew that I was right. I could also tell he was not in the mood for one of our arguments.

"Just… next time you are going to be gone, let Gobber know so he doesn't waste time looking for you," my dad said.

"Alright," I answered before heading up the stairs. Thankfully my dad didn't notice the glove on my hand nor my ripped up shirt in the dimly lit room. I got to my room and climbed sat on my bed. Today had not been anything like I thought it would be. You would think nearly dying would be the most shocking thing that happened to me, but nope.

I made friends with a dragon. Not just any dragon, but a Night Fury. Well, that and my hand… I really hope I could control it, I don't need my arm turning all scaly again when I am surrounded by people who make a living killing things that had scales on them. Especially if it is going to be as painful as it was this afternoon.

I debated sleeping with the leather glove on or off. Better leave it on, would rather be safe than sorry. Waking up with an axe at my neck would not be all that pleasant, though I doubted my dad would go that far. Screw up or not, I was still his son.

* * *

Okay, Chapter 2 complete! I know it was a bit dialogue heavy, but I hope y'all enjoyed it! That and I got some cover art for this story. It is by Yaromeja on deviantArt. Again, thanks for reading and feedback is appreciated!


	3. Magika Unleashed

Welcome back! Sorry for the long wait. College and my main story kind of took over, so please forgive me for the massive delay. I did not intend on waiting this long. Once again, I would like to thank everyone for the reviews, favorites, and follows. Means a lot to me that you find my little story interesting and likable. Not much else to say other than I made a few changes to chapter 2. Nothing major so don't feel as if you have to reread it.

 **EDIT: 9-24-17**

Last of the revisions I am planning on making. Again, shouldn't be anything too different.

* * *

 _Hiccup_

When I had first woke up the following morning, the day before had all seemed like a dream. The glove on my left hand swiftly reminded me that it wasn't a dream. That the previous day had indeed actually happened in all of its gritty details. I wasn't sure if I should be excited that it wasn't a dream… or afraid. On one side, I now had someone I could talk and relate to. Someone who could grow into a friend, if that was possible. The reverse of that being that I was now, for the time being at least, part dragon… in a village that made a living out of killing dragons…

I could hear words in the snarls and roars of dragons, and I could see much better than any human should have been able to in the dark. My left hand was no longer that of a human, but that of a Night Fury. And these are only the effects I knew of. I don't know why, but I feel as if there will be more to come. That this whole ordeal is just the beginning of something else entirely.

With my brain trying to catch up on all this, I shook my head to clear my thoughts. As time passed, the situation would start to clear itself up, at least I hoped it would. Swinging my feet over my bed, I got up and started getting ready for a new day. After quickly changing into a fresh pair of clothes, that did not include a shredded shirt, and grabbing my notebook, I started down the stairs. My dad was gone as per usual in the mornings to complete his duties as chief. I wanted to get back to the cove as soon as possible. But first I had to let Gobber know I was going to be out. Given how he was one of the friendlier Vikings, in tolerating my existence, I thought it would be reasonable to honor my dad's instructions to let him know that I wasn't going to be around.

As I approached for forge, I could hear the sound of metal clashing against metal. I hated to say it, but it was giving me a bit of a headache. Which was very unusual as I am normally right next to Gobber helping him and never really had this happen before. Maybe it was from the lack of water I had yesterday. The smell of the smoke from the fire also seemed to be a lot stronger than usual. Either Gobber was doing some serious forging or I was finding out more 'unintended' side effects. I am beginning to think that it might be more towards the later… Hopefully Toothless will have some answers. However, based on what he said yesterday, I doubted that would be the case.

"Hey Gobber," I said as I rounded the corner and stepped into the forge. Gobber ceased his hammering for a moment, much to my head's relief.

"Mornin' Hiccup, I see you came to join me today," Gobber started, glancing over at me. Either he didn't see the glove on my hand or didn't think anything of it.

"Right… actually I just wanted to let you know I was going to be out in the forest," I replied. Gobber did not look amused.

"Right… And what might you be up to, eh?" Gobber asked before returning to his work.

A sharp pain range through my head with each blow of his hammer. I honestly thought my head was going to explode if I stayed around much longer.

"Not much, just exploring the forest. Thought maybe it would be a good form of exercise for me," I said. While not necessarily completely true, it wasn't one hundred percent lie.

Gobber seemed to ponder what I had said. I hoped that he would give me the day off. Usually it didn't matter all that much, but because of the recent dragon raid there was a lot of work to be done.

"Eh, while there is work to be done, I think you might be onto somethin'. Even after years working here you haven't bulked up much. Seeing as how your mind is already made, I don't think there is much reason to stop ya. But tomorrow I want you work'n here! Got a lot that needs to get done!" Gobber replied, much to my relief.

"Thanks Gobber, you're the best!" I said before sprinting off toward to woods. Once again I stopped and grabbed a fish, seeing how the one I brought yesterday probably got squashed flat by a boulder.

I will say that the forest seemed much more alive than it ever has in the past. Even though I had been among these trees many times before, today it seemed like I was entering them for the first time all over again. I could hear everything around me. The birds in the trees, the insects in the grass, and the sheep in the pastures, all of the sounds almost overpowered me before they seemed to tune themselves out again.

As I ran towards the cove that Toothless was trapped in, I started thinking about my hand and how the scales had crept up my arm. I wondered what would happen if they didn't stop there. Would I turn into some sort of dragon hybrid freak? Maybe just straight up turn into a dragon. If I had to choose, it was definitely the latter of those two options. Vikings have seen dragons before, while they tend to kill dragons on sight I bet my odds were better as a dragon than some scaly human looking thing. When you live in a region like this, Vikings tend to kill first, ask questions later. Especially when most unknown things here are trying to eat you for breakfast.

It didn't take long, much shorter than last time in fact, for me to reach my destination. I quickly went down the narrow path I found yesterday that lead to the bottom of the cove. Most of the cove was covered in shade due to the combination its steep walls and the early morning sun. Even then a few rays of sunlight made it down into the tranquil cove. A few birds flew around, singing their songs before flying deeper into the forest. I started looking around for Toothless as I entered into the peaceful hideaway.

"Toothless?" I called out, holding onto the fish.

My ears twitched as I heard a swooshing sound. I started to turn my head towards the noise, but was tackled to the ground before it could happen. To my surprise, there was a rather fierce looking Night Fury sitting on top of me, holding me pinned to the ground. His eyes were narrowed and looked as if he could end my life at any second. I almost thought that something had happened, that the queen Toothless had spoken so foully of had reasserted control over him and now he was going to kill me.

"Heh, you're too easy," Toothless said with a laugh before getting up off of me. "Going to have to fix that."

"Oh hardy har har," I said as I let out a breath I didn't realize I had been holding and pushed myself off the ground and back onto my feet. "To think I brought you food and that is how you repay me."

I saw Toothless' hears perk up when I said food. His head snapped back towards me as he eyed the fish that he had missed in his excitement earlier. He started stalking closer to me, his body low to the ground. Not wanting to be between a ravenous dragon and its food, I decided it would be in the best interest of my health to give Toothless the fish as soon as possible. Acting quickly, I threw the fish into the air towards the Night Fury.

Toothless leapt into the air almost instantaneously. The fish never even came close to the ground before it disappeared inside the jaws of the Night Fury. Toothless made a few quick, short bites before swallowing the fish down in one swift motion. When Toothless had finished, he looked over back at me. I could clearly see in his eyes that he wanted another.

"Sorry Toothless, only brought the one fish," I said somewhat sheepishly rubbing the back of my head with my gloved hand, reminding me to take it off.

"Ugh…. Why only one?" Toothless replied, rolling his eyes as he came closer to me.

"Well… I don't know how much dragons eat. One whole fish is usually more than enough for one human," I retorted as I pulled off the glove that covered my scaled covered left hand.

"Humans are rather lazy beings compared to us dragons," Toothless replied as he followed next to me. "We burn energy a lot faster than you do."

"Fair enough," I relied as I walked further into the cove. "I will say that his cove is rather beautiful."

"Yeah… A beautiful prison…" Toothless said somberly, his ears drooping down as he looked at the grass below him.

I could feel the waves of sadness rolling off of Toothless as a pang of regret surged through me. Toothless had lost the one thing that dragons valued above all else because of me. I joined him in looking down at the green grass below our feet, or claws in Toothless' case.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled in a barely audible breath.

* * *

 _Toothless_

My ears perked up upon hearing Hiccup mumble his apology. I let out a low sigh as I turned my head skyward. A few birds were flying about this morning, obviously trying to find some food for themselves and their hatchlings. After a bit, I turned my head towards the human next to me. He looked like… well, like he wished he could undo what he had done to me.

"Hiccup… don't worry about it," I started in a calm voice. The young, hornless Viking turned his head towards me as I continued. "If I had to choose between losing my ability to fly and being free from the queen or being able to fly but still being a slave, I would give up my flight every time. It wouldn't be an easy decision, but it would be one I wouldn't regret."

I paused for a second, listening to the gentle breeze rustle the leaves of a nearby tree and looking up at the cloud that had moved between us and the sun before continuing.

"I would rather be stuck here than be a slave to the queen. So…" I paused for a moment, "I forgive you. I may be flightless, but I am free. I may be stuck here, but I have made a friend. So thank you for freeing me."

Upon finishing, I looked back at Hiccup to see how or if he would respond. I don't know what he thought I was going to say, but based on his facial expression it clearly wasn't what he expected.

"I… I don't know what to say," Hiccup replied. "I mean, I took away your ability to fly, your very livelihood as a dragon. How can you just forgive me for that?"

"As I said, I will miss being able to soar through the skies but it will be worth it. A heavy price for freedom, but one I am willing to pay. So I will ask you not to beat yourself up over the loss of my tailfin. It is in the past now and nothing can undo it."

I watched Hiccup as what I said sunk in. He appeared to be deep in thought as he stared at the sky. Suddenly his head snapped towards me before he pulled out… well I didn't know what it was.

"What's that?" I questioned, looking with curiosity at the rectangular, brown object.

"My notebook," Hiccup answered as he started using a stick with a pointed, black stone on the end to do something in his 'notebook.' "Just stay still for a second."

I cocked my head sideways momentarily, wondering what the small human was doing. Nonetheless, I complied with his wish. It wasn't like I had anything better to do at the moment. After a few minutes, Hiccup spoke again.

"Alright, you can move again," Hiccup said as he set down the stick he had been using.

"What were you doing?" I asked as I wandered over next to Hiccup.

"Drawing a detailed sketch of you," Hiccup replied.

I looked at him blankly. Not one word of that made a lick of sense to me. My confusion was obviously written all over my face as Hiccup rolled his eyes and turned his 'notebook' towards me. Upon looking at it, I saw what looked exactly like me. A sketch as Hiccup called it.

"This is a sketch?" I inquired, inspecting the notebook further.

"Yep!" Hiccup replied, quite proud of his accomplishment.

"What's it for?" I pressed on, trying to learn more about what the hornless Viking was planning. I noticed that he had drawn my tail and its remaining fin to greater detail off to the side of the main sketch.

"Building you a new tail fin," Hiccup answered. "I should be able to make you a new fin of some sort. One that will let you fly again."

My jaw dropped there for a second. I _must_ have misheard him. Surely he didn't say he was going to restore my ability to fly. That was crazy talk...

…

Yet it did sound appealing; very appealing.

"Did you say… that you could make it so I can fly again?" I questioned, hoping that I had not misheard the human. Yet I must have as there was no way to make me fly again. Then again, humans were creative creatures.

"Well… in theory I should be able to," Hiccup said, rubbing the back of his head with his claw.

Before Hiccup could react, I was on top of him and had pinned the human to the ground. My long tongue quickly cover his entire front side in dragon salvia.

"Toothless!" Hiccup shouted out with a mixture of surprise and laughter. After a few good licks, the small Viking was covered from head to toe and trying to catch his breath from laughing. "Alright that's enough, Toothless!"

I relented my thankful and energetic assault and stepped off of Hiccup. A small laugh escaped my mouth as I stared at my handiwork. Perhaps I had gone a bit overboard in my excitement. To put it bluntly, Hiccup looked a bit… ridiculous right now. His hair was pointing straight up at the front and this clothes were soaked.

"Oh yeah, laugh it up now buddy," Hiccup said, rolling his eyes at me.

"Sorry, I got a bit lost in my excitement there…." I replied, though my sincerity might have been lost as I was still smirking.

"Really? I didn't notice," Hiccup replied sarcastically.

"Do you think I will be able to fly again?" I asked in a low voice after several seconds of silence.

"I'll try my best to make it so. I took flight from you; I will give flight back to you," Hiccup answered sincerely.

"Thank you… You do not know how much that means to me," I replied, bowing my head ever so slightly at the human before me.

* * *

 _Hiccup_

"By the way," I started, "I think I may have found out some more 'unintended side effects' as you call them."

I saw a worried look appear on Toothless' face.

"What do you mean?" He asked, sounding somewhat concerned.

"It's nothing serious, but I noticed I could see in the dark very well last night, too well for a human. That and this morning while at the forge for a bit, I could smell things from farther away than usual and that loud noises started giving me a headache like none I have had before."

"Hmm… If I didn't know you were talking about yourself, I would have guessed you were talking about a dragon," Toothless sighed. "It seems my magika has had far greater consequences than I had imagine. You have my apologies Hiccup."

"It's fine Toothless. I'm an inventor; I will adapt and overcome. It's what I do," I said, tapping my head with my draconic claw before pausing for a bit. "I don't think you will know the answer to this, but what would have happened to me if those scales hadn't stopped at my shoulder yesterday? Would I have turned into a full dragon like you?"

"If I had to guess, that would be correct. I can say that whatever happened would only be temporary or last as long as you willed it to. You will always be you. You are human at your core and no amount of magika will change that," Toothless answered before his face turned slightly more serious and stared into my eyes. "However, the only way to know for sure is to let the change continue and experience it for yourself."

"So… you are saying I should willingly turn into, we hope, a dragon…" I continued.

"Hiccup," Toothless started with a big, happy grin on his face, "If you do turn into a dragon, I can guarantee you will _love_ flying."

I'm not sure exactly what, but something about what Toothless said seemed to make up my mind for me. I would be lying if I said I didn't envy the birds, and yes the dragons as well, for their ability to fly through the skies. So the idea of being able to fly myself… that did sound immensely appealing.

"Well… it would put myself in a situation to learn more about how you fly and fix your tail up," I mused, trying to give myself a legitimate reason to go through with this experiment. "Count me in."

"So you will make it so I can fly again and as payment I will teach you how to fly along with the other bits of how to be a dragon," Toothless said, leaning his head forward.

"Ummm…" I stood there for a few seconds unsure of what to do.

"Oh, right… You aren't familiar with dragon culture. I should probably explain…" Toothless started, somewhat embarrassed at having acted without explaining his actions, "When dragons agree upon a deal they press their foreheads together. A small, and I mean small, magika exchange takes place as a sign of trust. In your current state, placing your claw on my forehead should suffice."

"Oh, alright," I said before placing my claw on Toothless' forehead. I felt a small shock jump between us upon feeling Toothless' scales with my own. It didn't hurt or anything, just felt a bit weird. Like what happens when you touch a metal door handle after getting out of bed on a cold day.

"It is complete," Toothless said as he pulled his head back, and I pulled my hand back. "So shall we start?"

"Might as well," I said before pulling my shirt and pants off leaving me in just my undergarments. No sense in having my clothes shredded like last time. I shivered some as most of my skin was exposed to the cold, northern air. "So what should I do?"

"This will be a first for me as well, but if I had to guess you should focus on the magika in your hand. Try and force it to expand to the rest of your body. Well… perhaps force is the wrong word… Allow to flow, or guide it would be more appropriate. Nothing with regards to magika should ever be forced except for a few rare occasions," Toothless elaborated. I nodded my head, understanding what he was trying to communicate.

With Toothless' instructions in mind, I closed my eyes and started focusing on my left hand, err, claw. I wasn't exactly sure what I should be looking for but given how powerful this magika was supposed to be, it shouldn't be too hard to find. Sure enough it didn't take me long to find it, and when I did I let out a startled gasp. I didn't know what I was expecting the magika to feel like, but it certainly wasn't this. It felt like… well, home. A home I never had, where I was accepted. It felt like peace. I did the only logical thing I could think of and embraced it. I embraced the magika and let it flow through me.

If the feeling of just finding the magika was welcoming, then actually having it flow through me felt like Valhalla. I opened my eyes and looked down at my left claw. Already the brown scales from before were advancing up my arm. However, this time it was not accompanied by the searing pain as it had last time. Instead there was a much milder pain, one that I hardly noticed with my mind focused on the magika surging through me. It still felt massively weird as my skin changed and my bones restructured. Taking a quick glance over at Toothless, I saw him watching with a look of amazement plastered across his face. I wondered what this transformation looked like from his perspective.

Looking myself over, I saw that brown scales covered most of my body while black scales covered my hands and feet. That was when I started glowing. I was forced to close my eyes as the brightness rapidly increased. There was a sudden, sharp increase in the moderate pain I had feeling, almost as if someone had pinched me. Moments later I felt myself landing unceremoniously on the ground with a flop. I groaned as I opened my eyes again and saw that my face was in the green grass of the cove.

"That… was weird, yet amazing at the same time," I managed to say in a barely audible voice. Though it didn't sound like my voice and my words didn't really sound like words. They sounded like Toothless' barks, yips, and all the other noises he made that I could somehow hear words in.

"Wow," I heard Toothless say as he came closer to me. "You certainly look unique."

I managed to push myself to my feet, though I didn't feel that much taller. Shaking my head to clear the grogginess that temporarily occupied it. That was when everything rushed back into my head.

"Did it work?" I asked, still trying to get my bearings straight.

"Are you feeling alright?" Toothless questioned, concern audible in his voice. "Why would I say you look unique if it didn't work?"

"Sorry, just feeling a bit light headed right now," I answered, giving my head one final, strong shake. With that finished, my mind finally cleared completely. I looked down at one of my claws and started examining my body. To put it simply, I was a Night Fury. The more complex observation was that I was indeed unique as Toothless had stated. Then again, no one had ever seen another Night Fury. For all I knew, there could be another Night Fury without black scales. Then again, that was unlikely. Besides, I was not the dragon expert here.

All four of my claws were a night black color while the rest of my scales, or at least the ones I could see, were a dark brown with a few patches of black scales scattered about. I started towards the pond that was in the cove, intending to look at my reflection. My first few steps took a bit getting used to, but once I was halfway to my destination I had the hang of it. The first thing I noticed upon gazing at my reflection were my eyes. While they had always been green, they were now a much darker shade of green. Lifting up one of my claws, I dipped in in the cool water and watch the ripples spread out around it distorting my image.

"So… I assume Night Furies are normally black like you are," I said after a few seconds of looking myself over.

"If by Night Fury you mean Night Shadow, then yes," Toothless answered, walking up next to me.

"Night Shadow?" I asked.

"That is our race. You humans call us Night Furies; we call ourselves Night Shadows as we blend in with the night sky," Toothless explained. "Though you appear as if you would blend in more with the forest than the night sky."

"What do you think caused the difference?" I inquired, looking over at the black dragon next to me.

"I honestly haven't the slightest of clues," Toothless said, "Could be anything from brown head fur to the fact that you are human.

"So what do we do now?" I questioned, eager to learn more. Though I had to suppress a laugh at Toothless calling my hair 'head fur'.

"Well, teaching you to fly will take several days, if not weeks depending on how easily you pick it up. In the meantime I think explaining how our tail fins work would be in your best interest," Toothless responded, a hint of eagerness creeping into his voice. "But first, let's make sure you are used to that body of yours."

"How do you recommend doing that?" I questioned, growing slightly worried at the smirk that had appeared on Toothless' draconic face.

Without warning, Toothless turned around and smacked my head with his remaining tail fin before running off to another part of the cove.

"I believe you humans call it tag," Toothless happily shouted over his shoulder with a small laugh.

I smirked as I saw what Toothless was up to. If it was a game he wanted, it is a game he will get. Sadly, running on four legs is not the same as running on two legs. My feet quickly got tangled below me before my face planted itself in the grass. Pushing myself back to my feet, I decided to try again, but a bit slower this time. I started normally walking in the direction Toothless had run. Said Night Fury was currently laughing at my misfortune as I increased the speed at which my claws moved.

"It would appear you still have your work cut out for you," Toothless said as I got closer before darting off at a speed I currently couldn't hope to match.

"I have been a dragon for all of five minutes!" I countered, almost tripping again but managed to recover. "At least I am managing as well as I am!"

"True, you are doing quite well," Toothless said, jumping up onto a ledge. "I wonder if my magika is acting as some sort of instinct for you to follow. Then again, it usually only takes a few minutes for a newly hatched Night Shadow to take its first steps."

"So you're saying I am on par with a newly born dragon. Yippee…" I sighed while rolling my large draconic eyes, sarcasm ripe in my voice.

"I didn't say that," Toothless started, jumping into the air before spreading his wings and gliding for a bit. "You're doing better than a youngling would. They usually don't start running around till at least a week since they hatch."

I tried to mimic Toothless' action and jumped up onto the ledge. It wasn't quite as graceful as he was and I had to claw my way up for the last bit. Without the slightest of clues on how to actually fly or glide, I decided to just wing it and see what would happen. What was the worst that could happen?

* * *

 _Toothless_

I watched as Hiccup followed me and bound onto the ledge I had previously been occupying. He didn't quite make it in a single bound and had to use his claws to pull himself up the last bit, but it was still a decent jump. As for what happened next, I wasn't sure if I should be horrified or greatly amused. I say horrified because it looked like Hiccup was going to try and glide like I had. Which would only end in disaster. Though it would be amusing to see him fail epically.

Oh and epically fail he did.

Hiccup leapt into the air and spread his wings. Not even a second later did the new dragon suddenly turn down towards the ground and face planted with a loud yelp. I both grinned in amusement and winced in pain. Sure it was funny, but Hiccup was my friend right? I shouldn't laugh at him getting hurt. I started trotting over to where he was lying on the ground, clearing not intending on standing up.

"You alright?" I asked as I came up next to him.

"Not my best idea…" Hiccup groaned out, attempting to rub his head with his claws.

"No kidding," I started, rolling my eyes. "I mean, did you really think it would be that easy?"

"Well you made it look easy…" Hiccup mumbled his response.

"That's because I have been flying for years. Of course it's easy for me," I replied, unsure if I should admonish Hiccup for his reckless decision. Thankfully the ledge wasn't that high up and it was a rather short fall. If it had been much higher things could have been very different.

"Just don't try that again until I actually start teaching you. That could have resulted in you seriously injuring yourself," I said with a sigh.

"I understand…" Hiccup replied. "Sorry for worrying you."

"Worrying me? I thought it was quite humorous actually," I countered with a smug smile.

Hiccup looked up at me looking rather irked. His tail quickly came around and slapped me across my face.

"You're it!" He shouted as he ran off away from me, though his movement was rather awkward from his fall.

I stood there stunned for a second before grinning. The hunt was on. I quickly bound after Hiccup easily catching up to him before leaping into the air and landing on his back. Hiccup instantly collapsed to the ground from the sudden increase of weight. I leapt off of the downed dragon, making sure to push him further into the grass. After landing, I turned around and faced Hiccup with a large smirk.

"I do believe you are it again," I said, quite proud of myself. Hiccup sprang toward me in an attempt to redeem himself. Unfortunately for him, I was standing in front of a tree. So when I nimbly dodge his attack he smacked face first into said tree.

"Oh there is much to teach you," I started. "You might be older than a hatchling, yet you have just as much to learn."

"So you're saying I am a hatchling again?" Hiccup asked, shaking his head some.

"In a way you are hatchling as this is your first time as a dragon. Everything about this is new to you and you are learning as you go," I continued, walking in a steady circle around the brown and black Night Shadow. "I will say that you are taking this remarkably well. No freaking out or anything this time. I didn't actually think you would go through with actually trying to see what would happen if you unleashed the magika inside you this soon."

"Well… what you said about flying caught my attention," Hiccup said, sitting down and looking up at the sky. "I always thought it would be cool to fly. To be free of the ground and be able to soar through the sky. So when you said that I figured it would be worth the risk. Besides, if it went wrong it's not like I would miss much back home…"

A somber mood settled over the two of us as we were both reminded of our current dilemmas. The fact that I could not fly and that Hiccup was… disliked among his own people.

"Things will get better for us," I started, walking over and sitting next to Hiccup. "I may not be able to fix the issues you have back home, but I will always be here for you."

Hiccup looked over at me with a few tears in his eyes. There was a faint smile on his draconic muzzle. I raised up one of my claws at set it on his shoulder.

"I don't believe in coincidences, we were fated to meet via the will of the Dragoness of the Ocean," I continued confidently. "As I said, I will always be here for you when things get rough or out of hand."

"Thank you…" Hiccup choked out, bowing his head toward me.

"You are welcome, Hiccup," I replied bowing my head towards his as well.

We sat there in silence for what felt like hours, just enjoying the presences of the other. Knowing that we each had someone we could turn to for help after years of isolation and loneliness. After a while, Hiccup subconsciously reverted back to his human state in a flash of light similar to before, the only sign that he had been a dragon moments ago were the black scales on his left hand. For reasons unknown to me, Hiccup's face flushed red before he ran over to where his… I think he called them clothes, were located.

Humans… they are a strange bunch.

* * *

Okay. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It is the longest yet for this story, but not the longest I have written (that honor goes to 13,660 word mega chapter in my other story). I certainly had fun writing this chapter. I should also announce that Jack Storm 448 will be beta reading this story for me from this point onward. He, like me, comes from the Pokémon section of this site, but I would fully recommend his stories if you find the time or want to try something new. Thanks for reading, Merry Christmas, and God Bless!


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